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McDonald’s sponsors StarCraft 2 tournament in Australia

With the expansion of the StarCraft II World Championship Series into Australia with two new events, McDonald’s has become the first commercial partner for the tournament through a deal with You Know Media, writes Ad News’ Arvind Hickman. Although the deal is Australia-only at the moment, it includes naming, on-ground activations, content integration and branding for the event.

“This marks the first sponsorship of the WCS, and the events in Australia will also be live tournaments, as You Know Media also entered a partnership with Blizzard and the ESL,” You Know Media CEO Ryan Cunningham said. “It’s a big step to support this growing sport and its huge local audience, which is hungry for brands to help take them to the next level. Credit should go to Blizzard who recognized the potential in a new partnership like this which grows the category and challenges how brand sponsorships can enhance and grow sports.”

Interestingly enough, the announcement comes mere days after McDonald’s withdrew from sponsoring the Olympics after 40 years of support. This isn’t the first time the fast food giant has sponsored an esport event, either, as it also was part of this year’s Madden Bowl tournament in the United States. Among Western fast food chains, perhaps only Arby’s, a prominent sponsor of ELEAGUE, has had a larger impact.

The Australian event, titled StarCraft 2 World Championship Series Challenger, is set to start Saturday, according to the promotional material.